Being a Manager May Sound Easy but It’s Difficult to Stand Out from the Crowd. Here’s How You Can Do It.
Managers are a dime a dozen. It’s a copy, paste with authority, but not enough to be on top of the food chain. Being a manager has its pros and cons.
A manager will earn more money, but they’d have more work… they would learn new skills, but take on more responsibilities.
So, how do managers break out from that copy, paste managerial style we see so soften? That’s what we’re going to find out today, in our article 15 Things Managers Should Learn to Breakout from the Crowd.
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1
Human Capital Is Your Number 1 Priority
Management is a people- job. Before anything, a manager needs to learn to prioritise the human experience in the work they are doing; it’s the only thing that leads to long term sustainable and predictable production. Otherwise, managers will be dealing with strikes and unions, which is never a joyful experience.
2
Make Sure People Have the Right Tools for the Right Job
The number one way to ensure the work gets done, is to have the right tools for the job. Good internet, the right software, the correct protective gear. Not having the right tools to do a good job is a top work frustration.
A great manager should learn to be proactive in providing these tools to ensure that the work gets done correctly and on-time… ideally with minimal amounts of agitation and frustration for employees.
3
They Must Learn to Prioritise
We get it… everything is important. So, how do managers learn to prioritize?
Toggl.com explains something known as the Eisenhower Matrix. It’s a strategy named after former US president, Dwight Eisenhower.
During his 8-years in office, he “initiated space exploration with NASA, launched an early version of the Internet through DARPA, and supported the development of the Interstate Highway.”.. So they guy managed to get a lot done.
His strategy was a priority matrix which separated his tasks into 4 categories:
· Urgent and important (must be done immediately)
· Important, but not urgent (schedule for later)
· Urgent, but not important (may be delegated to someone else)
· Neither urgent nor important (eliminate them from to-do list)
Managers could easily learn to prioritize by putting the Eisenhower Matrix into practise.
4
They Must Learn to Always Involve the Team
Managers need to learn to not be removed from their team. They need to bring them into the decision-making process, feedback, and planning to ensure that the systems they implement are practical and manageable.
By learning this skill, it immediately creates more trust among employees, who as a result, feel valued and know their opinion counts.
The late American engineer and businessman, Charles Erwin Wilson, aptly said “A good boss makes his men realize they have more ability than they think they have, so that they consistently do better work than they thought they could.”
5
Managers Must Learn to Continually Grow
Managers that want to stand out from the crowd must be committed to growth. Yes, of course growth in the company, but we mean growth in the individual.
When staff can see that a manager is as pumped about the staff’s growth as they are about their own growth, it can lead to an exciting, and supportive work environment.
An important part of always growing… is always learning. Managers must become life-long learners – it’s the most valuable skill anyone can have
Which is why we spent the last few months developing our latest premium education experience called Learning Mastery, where we guide you on how to best teach yourself… anything and everything. You leave the 21-day course a “master learner”… or we’ll give you a refund, as simple as that. You can enroll today by going to alux.com/learn
6
They Need to Learn How to Communicate the Bigger Picture
Doing a job blindly with no vision is not the way to go. As a manager, it’s important to learn the skill of sharing the vision, or the bigger picture, so that employees know exactly what they’re working towards and, perhaps more importantly, why.
According to Harvard Business Review, managers and leaders need to focus on micromanagement. They encourage managers and leaders to answer the following questions to bring their staff up to speed with the overall goal and objective of the company.
Why the organization exists and what its purpose is.
What it does and does not offer its customers, and how they add value to these customers… all very important to have your team understand.
7
They Must Learn to Effectively Scale Operations
There’s a difference between growth and scaling and any manager worth their salt knows this. Growth is seen in linear terms – meaning a company will add new resources, which will result in higher revenues.
Scaling differs in that there isn’t a huge increase in resources, but there is still an increase in revenue. To give an example, there is no difference in sending out 1 automated SMS compared to 1,000 automated SMS… but sending out 1,000 is going to be more beneficial than just sending one.
Same input, but dramatically different results.
8
They Must Learn to Model Ethics and Civic Mindedness
It’s important for managers to understand that any business operates within a community and municipal system.
Acknowledging that there are rules to follow and a duty to uphold, will guarantee that a manager is a respected figure of authority within the business.
Maria Razumich-Zec said, “Your reputation and integrity are everything. Follow through on what you say you’re going to do. Your credibility can only be built over time, and it is built from the history of your words and actions.”
9
Learn to Adopt Technology That Works
And we don’t just mean for novelty, we mean to actually drive improvement in the products or production.
Optimizing technology benefits a company in a plethora of ways as pointed out by Tech Times.
– Marketing is enhanced
– Better customer relations
– Easier communication
– More efficiency
– Reduced labour costs
Learning to move with the times, is invaluable for a manager to learn.
If you’re interested in technology, check out 10 Technologies That Can Make You Rich.
10
Train and Implement Upgrades Until They Run Smoothly
So, now that you’ve got your tech upgrades in place, as a manager, you can’t just rest on your laurels and think that the computers will take care of everything.
A manager needs to learn how each program or system operates, so that when things need upgrading, or there are glitches, they can jump in and fix it or at least know who to call in quickly.
It brings us back to our earlier point about having the right tools for the job. This way, employees can continue working without much interruption and their anxiety levels don’t shoot through the roof.
11
Learn to Model the Behaviour/Culture from the Top
All eyes are on the manager, so best to learn quickly that as a manager, a good example needs to be set from the thart.
As we said in our video, 15 Skills all CEOs Master, as the same rule applies to managers, “Be a role model to your employees…. We’re not saying you have to start work at 4am like Apple’s Tim Cook, or be sending work emails at 11pm like Mary Barra, the Chief Executive Officer of General Motors, but you do need to be dedicated and work hard, so you can inspire those who work underneath you.”
12
Learn to Develop the Team – without Hand-Holding the Staff
Aluxers, as a manager, it’s best to accelerate talent from within to drive employee investment and reduce frustrations. By taking this stance, you won’t have a need to spoon feed your staff, but rather, they would develop, grow and learn to resolve issues without having to constantly lean on the manager for support or solutions.
Like Richard Branson said, “Train people well enough so they can leave, treat them well enough so they don’t want to.”
13
Managers Must Learn to Never Show Favouritism
A team of employees is not a box of Quality Street… you can’t only pick your favs.
And while we’re all aware of office politics, it can be very frustrating for employees when they already know who the boss’s favourite is, and who will be up for promotion.
Showing favouritism sends a message to employees that it’s not results that help you grow in an organization, but rather winning favour with the manager.
As Fortune.com advises, by developing a strategy to fairly reward strong employees, you “can ensure the retention of these employees, while keeping motivation and office morale high.”
14
They Need to Learn to Empower People
Being a great manager is more about the team than it is about the manager. An excellent manager only becomes excellent when they build an excellent team.
With this in mind, it’s up to the manager to learn to spot opportunities to upskill and empower their team.
We reiterate, a team that feels valued, needed, and appreciated, is a team that will not only reflect well on the manager, but will also grow the company in all the right directions, benefiting everyone.
15
Managers Must Learn to Embrace Change
Change is part of human development. It’s inevitable and isn’t always a sign of crisis, just a call for action. Good managers seek out the next phase so they can change as they go.. Which is far better than a panic pivot.
As much as people resist change, if dealt with correctly, staff will understand the reason for it, how the change will benefit them – and the company – and that their feelings are substantiated and heard.
All 15 of these points are things that managers can easily learn to stand out from the crowd, and we hope you agree too. Let us know by leaving a comment, subscribing to our channel and hitting the bell notification for alerts on when new videos are released.
Question:
What do you think could be added to the list on what would help make a manager stand out from the crowd?
